Marathon Diaries Part Four: Aftermath

What do you do immediately after achieving a defining and utterly tiring goal? In my case, I had no respite as my flight back to the UK was scheduled for the same evening. The race was done but the mission far from complete. Moving across Paris on the Metro was arduous, painful even, but accompanied by a sense of sheer joy. The ache after a long run is actually rewarding; a continuous reminder of a job well done. This was the longest of runs and the aches had never been so bad, the feeling never so fulfilling. Somehow, I had enough left in the tank to make it back on time. To my genuine surprise, it was a flawless weekend. The fact that I'd gone it alone added to the sense of occasion and achievement. I can only thank God that I made it through unscathed, with perfect health throughout.

The recommended recovery time for a marathon is twenty six days; one for each painstaking mile. In the week after the race, I totally let myself go, not training at all and stuffing myself with all sorts of junk food. It's important to liberate yourself now and then and this was the one window of opportunity I had to satisfy my nutritious urges.

After a week though, the itch was back and light training resumed. Running was off the cards due to a strange, unpredictable acute pain in my right foot. An x-ray revealed it was mild tissue damage and not a break, suggesting rest was the sensible option. Not a huge blow given that I ought to have been taking it easy anyway. However, I don't usually conform to the status quo and, contrary to advice, resumed a more intense schedule, including some running, ahead of the Coventry half-marathon on May 23rd. My motivation is threefold: firstly, I love running and want to experience the atmosphere of a race as soon as possible. Secondly, I advertised this race as the final component of my "50 mile challenge" when I launched my latest fundraising adventure. Lastly, Coventry is home and the perfect way to sign off this season in front of family, having missed out on it in Paris. I also missed out on Coventry last year due to a cold; here's hoping my ongoing foot injury doesn't stop me this time.

Cross training is the way forward for now: lots of rowing, some cycling and back to the free weights. I've lost much strength having ignored these aspects, focussing solely on running over the last two months, yet I've never felt in better shape.